The following guidelines must be adhered to:
• All text will be black in the report unless in very exceptional circumstance.
• Main body text must be at least 11pt font using either Arial or Calibri font.
• Main body text will have 1.5 line spacing.
• Margins will be a minimum of 2 cm on each side.
• All pages will be numbered consecutively.
• Figures must have captions and be numbered (e.g., Figure 1).
• Tables must have captions and be numbered (e.g., Table 1).
• Figures may be black and white, or colour.
1. Introduction
[x] An initial paragraph introducing the project context and idea (all projects).
[x] Research Question or Problem that will be Addressed: A hypothesis and/or research question(s) (research-based projects)
[x] Aims: Aims are broad statements of desired outcomes and intentions.
[x] Objectives: Objectives are the tangible steps that will be taken to achieve the aims -- tasks that will be done.
[x] Legal, Social, Ethical and Professional Considerations: Your project must include a description of the legal, social, ethical, and professional issues relevant to the project. All projects will have either a legal, social, ethical, or professional issue element. You must discuss these here and highlight any issues that had to be addressed before undertaking the project. If your project required ethical clearance, then this must be clearly stated in this section, including how the ethical considerations were managed.
[ ] Background: You need to convince your examination team that your project is a viable one by answering the question -- Why is this a suitable project for an MSc Project? The aim of the background section is to provide the reader with the relevant contextual information necessary to understand your work. This section concludes with a summary of the findings from the background investigation and how that justifies the work undertaken in your project. This section must be suitably referenced based on the context and justifications that you provide.
[ ] Report overview: Describe the upcoming sections in order -- this provides your reader with a roadmap of the report.
2. Literature or Technology Review
[x] Literature Review (for research or investigation-oriented projects)
All projects should reference some academic literature, although it is primarily research-orientated projects that will conduct a significant literature review in the background section. As with the technology review, the goal here is to make it clear why the choices were made in the project. It is expected that at least the research methodology and/or evaluation approach is defined from existing sources.
[x] Technology Review (for build or investigation-oriented projects)
The technology review focuses on technology that will be and could be used for the project. Typically, it is expected that you have reviewed different technology options for your project and summarised these options here. It should be clear why the technology choices taken were made.
3. Design/Methodology
Now you must tell your examination team what you are going by answering the question -- how are you going to undertake the project?
The aim of this section is to explain to your reader the work you are going to undertake. Depending on whether the project is more build or research-focused, this section can take one of the following forms.
[ ] Design (for build or investigation-oriented projects)
If your project is a build focused project, you should provide a design for what your project will build. The nature of this design will depend on your project, but it should provide a complete idea of what you are going to build, including the technologies to be used.
[ ] Methodology (for research or investigation-oriented projects)
If your project is research-focused, then you need to define the particular research methodology you are using to gather and assess data. Typically, this will involve some sort of data gathering process and statistical analysis of results. However, you should also describe the tools (e.g., technologies) that you will use as well.
[ ] Alternative Approaches
Another important point in this section is to document any alternative approaches you could have taken to complete the project. For example, were there different technology choices, design choices, or methodological choices you could have taken? You should explain why you have taken the approach you have taken rather than these alternatives.
4. Implementation or Results
Once the examination team knows what you planned to do, you must tell them what happened -- What was the outcome of the work you undertook in the project?
A build or investigative project will discuss the implementation. Do not just paste in lines of code to your report and call that an implementation! Your report should feature a minimum code to only discuss points. The idea for implementation is to describe how the design has actually turned out.
A research or investigative project will present the results of performing the methodology. These results must be correctly presented, using appropriate tables, charts, and statistical tests that suit the nature of the project. Results should be summarised, and any findings clearly presented.
[ ] Evaluation
The examination team now need to know how well the project went -- How good was the outcome from the project?
Evaluation is an important element of any project. You must tell your reader how good the final deliverable is. Your project does not have to be perfect -- indeed the outcomes might have been bad. The point is you must evaluate the outcome and discuss its strengths and weaknesses.
A key element of this section is a reflection on the aims and objectives set out at the start of the project, and how well these have been met. Again, it is possible not to achieve an aim or objective. The point is you evaluate how well you did meet your goals.
[ ] Related Work
Answer the question -- Who else has done something similar and how do my results compare?
Another key element of this section is evaluating your work against that of others. How good is your work when compared to other people who have undertaken similar work? It is important to be able to understand how well you have achieved your goals in relation to others, while also considering the time limitations of the project.
5. Conclusion
The conclusion summarises the project. You need to highlight your key outputs and/or discoveries. There are some particular subsections that must appear in your conclusion.
[ ] Reflection
You must critically reflect on the entire project process and how well you have worked on the project. What particular things have you learned during the project? Why were you able and unable to meet project goals? What would have you done differently in hindsight?
A common approach many students take in this section is to claim poor time management. Poor time management is rarely a problem unless you had too much to do in the project. Normally, what is called poor time management is poor organisation, planning, and motivation. Being honest in your reflection will help you understand how you can improve these issues rather than focusing on time management issues.
[ ] Future Work
Answer the question -- What next?
You've completed a significant piece of work -- perhaps the largest piece of work you have ever done. But no project is ever 100% complete, and you will have found new ideas along the way. If someone were to pick up your project, what avenues should be explored next?
6. References
In this section, you must reference any sources used in your work. Typically, these sources will have come up during the investigation and related work sections. Your referencing must use the IEEE referencing style IEEE Citation Guidelines2.doc (ieee-dataport.org) .
It is highly recommended that you use reference management software such as Mendeley or Zotero.
Many students ask how many references are required. That is like asking how long a piece of string is. Your project should have as many references as is required for it. However, having few references indicates that no thorough investigation has occurred.
7. Appendices
Appendices appear after references. Your appendices depend on the nature of your project. Do not assume people will read your appendices. Even if you direct them to do so in your main text, appendices are considered additional information and should not be relied upon to understand your main body of work. Refer readers to an appendix using a phrase such as see Appendix A for further details.
The following documents must be included as references:
Your Project Proposal.
Your Progress Review Form.
Your original plan and revised plans as your project evolved.
A description of how to access any technical output. It is strongly recommended you use GitHub or something similar to do this.
For any important communications between you and external stakeholders -- please ensure private data is removed and communications anonymized.
Report Layout and Style
The following guidelines must be adhered to: • All text will be black in the report unless in very exceptional circumstance. • Main body text must be at least 11pt font using either Arial or Calibri font. • Main body text will have 1.5 line spacing. • Margins will be a minimum of 2 cm on each side. • All pages will be numbered consecutively. • Figures must have captions and be numbered (e.g., Figure 1). • Tables must have captions and be numbered (e.g., Table 1). • Figures may be black and white, or colour.
1. Introduction
2. Literature or Technology Review
3. Design/Methodology
Now you must tell your examination team what you are going by answering the question -- how are you going to undertake the project?
The aim of this section is to explain to your reader the work you are going to undertake. Depending on whether the project is more build or research-focused, this section can take one of the following forms.
4. Implementation or Results
Once the examination team knows what you planned to do, you must tell them what happened -- What was the outcome of the work you undertook in the project? A build or investigative project will discuss the implementation. Do not just paste in lines of code to your report and call that an implementation! Your report should feature a minimum code to only discuss points. The idea for implementation is to describe how the design has actually turned out. A research or investigative project will present the results of performing the methodology. These results must be correctly presented, using appropriate tables, charts, and statistical tests that suit the nature of the project. Results should be summarised, and any findings clearly presented.
[ ] Evaluation The examination team now need to know how well the project went -- How good was the outcome from the project? Evaluation is an important element of any project. You must tell your reader how good the final deliverable is. Your project does not have to be perfect -- indeed the outcomes might have been bad. The point is you must evaluate the outcome and discuss its strengths and weaknesses. A key element of this section is a reflection on the aims and objectives set out at the start of the project, and how well these have been met. Again, it is possible not to achieve an aim or objective. The point is you evaluate how well you did meet your goals.
[ ] Related Work Answer the question -- Who else has done something similar and how do my results compare? Another key element of this section is evaluating your work against that of others. How good is your work when compared to other people who have undertaken similar work? It is important to be able to understand how well you have achieved your goals in relation to others, while also considering the time limitations of the project.
5. Conclusion
The conclusion summarises the project. You need to highlight your key outputs and/or discoveries. There are some particular subsections that must appear in your conclusion.
[ ] Reflection You must critically reflect on the entire project process and how well you have worked on the project. What particular things have you learned during the project? Why were you able and unable to meet project goals? What would have you done differently in hindsight? A common approach many students take in this section is to claim poor time management. Poor time management is rarely a problem unless you had too much to do in the project. Normally, what is called poor time management is poor organisation, planning, and motivation. Being honest in your reflection will help you understand how you can improve these issues rather than focusing on time management issues.
6. References
In this section, you must reference any sources used in your work. Typically, these sources will have come up during the investigation and related work sections. Your referencing must use the IEEE referencing style IEEE Citation Guidelines2.doc (ieee-dataport.org) . It is highly recommended that you use reference management software such as Mendeley or Zotero. Many students ask how many references are required. That is like asking how long a piece of string is. Your project should have as many references as is required for it. However, having few references indicates that no thorough investigation has occurred.
7. Appendices
Appendices appear after references. Your appendices depend on the nature of your project. Do not assume people will read your appendices. Even if you direct them to do so in your main text, appendices are considered additional information and should not be relied upon to understand your main body of work. Refer readers to an appendix using a phrase such as see Appendix A for further details. The following documents must be included as references: